SEVEN in 10, or 74.7 percent of households with children, and eight in 10, or 80.8 percent of households with pregnant members, experienced the highest food insecurity during the Covid-19 pandemic.
This was gleaned from the Rapid Nutrition Assessment Survey (RNAS) of the Department of Science and Technology’s Food and Nutrition Research Institute (DOST-FNRI).
The survey report was disclosed during a virtual presser “Food Security, Coping Mechanisms and Nutrition Services during the Covid-19 Pandemic” on December 29.
Science Secretary Fortunato de la Peña, who presented the report, said, “Employment, food security, food accessibility, access to health and nutrition programs for children, including pregnant women, are priority concerns during the pandemic and disasters in areas covered by RNAS.”
He said “these priority concerns may increase the percentages of nutrient deficiencies and undernutrition, leading to frequent illness that weakens the immune system, that increases susceptibility to Covid–19 and other viral infections resulting in tremendous medical cost, lost opportunities, and economic drain.”
The DOST’s “call to action, in terms of policy implication,” based on the study results, de la Peña pointed out, is that “donations, government services and benefits must be decentralized from the Highly Urbanized Cities [HUCs] and extended equitably to provinces with less resources and with minimal or no benefactors.”
De la Peña said the DOST provided programs and projects nationwide to help cushion the impact and help Filipinos cope with the challenges of the pandemic and disasters.
He said the public can have access to these services through the provincial and regional offices of the DOST.
Dr. Imelda Angeles-Agdeppa, DOST-FNRI chief science research specialist, Scientist II and RNAS Project Leader, said in the same virtual briefing that the RNAS “provides a snapshot of the nutrition and food security situation of the country during the Covid-19 pandemic.“
The study was held from November 3 to December 3. It covered 5,717 households, or 7,240 individuals, through telephone interview.
Angeles-Agdeppa added that the findings of the RNAS ”can aid policy-makers in understanding the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on food and nutrition security of Filipinos and guide reprogramming and enhancing of appropriate programs.”
Job loss
According to the study, about 2 in 10, or 16.7 percent, of household heads lost jobs, which was highest at 18.1 percent in Covid-19 high-risk areas.
However, about 17 percent had job opportunities, which was highest in Covid-19 medium-risk areas at 18.6 percent, mostly service- and agriculture-related, the study revealed.
Food insecurity higher in low- and medium-risk areas
The survey also showed that 6 out of 10, or 62.1 percent of households, experienced moderate or severe food insecurity.
Food insecurity was higher in low- and moderate-risk than in the high-risk areas.
This was explained by the situation that high-risk areas are in HUCs, where food availability and accessibility are easier due to local government unit (LGU), national government, or private assistance.